There are all kinds of love in this world
The 8 different types of love, explained
There are so many questions when it comes to love. How do you know if you’re in love? Why do you fall out of love? Is it possible to fall in love at first sight? We often think of love just in terms of romance, but love between friends and family members can be thought of as types of love in their own right, and they can be just as powerful. Meanwhile, there are a bunch of different types of romantic love too.
Ancient Greek society understood eight different concepts of love, each embodied by a different word – and they’re all still relevant today. Plus, they can help us to understand what kind of love were experiencing.
Different types of love: Greek types of love
The eight different types of love, according to the ancient Greeks, are:
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Eros (sexual passion)
Philia (deep friendship)
Ludus (playful love)
Agape (love for everyone)
Pragma (longstanding love)
Philautia (love of the self)
Storge (family love)
Mania (obsessive love)
So what is each type of love and what do they all mean?
1. Eros (sexual passion)
Eros is the word for romantic, passionate love, suitably named after the Greek go
The Four Types of Love: Some Are Healthy, Some Are Not
Today, we're talking about love and your health on The Scope. Love. It's a word that some of us use a lot. "I love that color on you." "I just love pizza." "I love, love, love you" to our little grandchildren. Some of us never feel comfortable using the word out loud. Philosophers, Theologians and now neuroscientists and clinicians think a lot about love. We use this word for so many emotions.
Maybe as we approach Valentine's Day we should think a little bit about the different kinds of love. Some good for you and good for your health and some maybe not so much. The Western tradition from the Greeks distinguishes four types of love and has a Greek word for all of them. There are many sources that define many other kinds of love but four is a pretty manageable number.
Eros: Erotic, Passionate Love
We might as well get that one out of the way first. Eros is erotic or sexual or passionate love. It's often all about need and it's more about the person who's feeling sexually attractive than it is about the person who is the focus of that love or thing that is the focus of that love. It is addicting. It can cause great joy and
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Most of us seem to be hankering after romantic love. But few of us realize that, far from being timeless and universal, romantic love is a modern construct that emerged in tandem with the novel.
In
Madame Bovary
(1856), itself a novel, Gustave Flaubert tells us that Emma Bovary only found out about romantic love through "the refuse of old lending libraries."
...were all about love and lovers, damsels in distress swooning in lonely lodges, postillions slaughtered all along the road, horses ridden to death on every page, gloomy forests, troubles of the heart, vows, sobs, tears, kisses, rowing-boats in the moonlight, nightingales in the grove, gentlemen brave as lions and gentle as lambs, too virtuous to be true, invariably well-dressed, and weeping like fountains.
But there are, of course, many other ways to love. By preoccupying ourselves with romantic love, we risk neglecting other types of love that are more stable or readily available, and that may, especially in the longer term, prove more healing and fulfilling.
The Ancient Greeks had several words for love, enabling them to distinguish more clearly between the different types. I’
Defining Love in Today's World
Our desire to understand love is obvious when you consider the numerous books, articles, and talk shows dedicated to the topic.
People around the world deem love as essential to happiness and look for it in many different places. Television and movies tell us what “real love” should look like — but somehow, something has been lost in the definition.
What is love?
This was a recurring question in my mind for many years. I had the privilege of being raised in a loving home. I can remember even at that time wondering, “What is love?” I concluded that it must be the warm feeling I got when my parents hugged and kissed me.
As a teenager, the word “love” was used so soon in a relationship that it became an inadequate expression when the relationship deepened. At this stage it's easy to confuse lust and love. Here's a helpful definition: lust can’t wait to get. Love can wait to give.
I began to understand the true essence of love when I met and began to date my husband, Glen.
I was working as a secretary in a small film equipment company, and the receptionist was a real matchmaker. She called me over to introduce me to the fellow who had just rep